Weekly Recap
A new process required for approving even virtual international
engagements is currently holding up my work with the Fishing Vessel Ocean observing Network
(FVON), so apologies to our international colleagues waiting on
movement there. This emergning network of the Global Ocean Observing
System is working to help develop best practices for instrumenting
fishing vessels with oceanographic sensors. There’s a lot of cool tech
out there around the world like ferryboxes deployed on Portuguese blue
water trawlers, ADCPs on fishing boats in Japan, multiparameter sensors
on pelagic trawlers and seiners in Italy, and Moana TD systems spanning
the globe from Australia to the Bahamas. FVON has also been in
communication with other Global Ocean Observing System networks like Argo about data best practices so that
data collected by fishermen can be high quality and standardized enough
to be complimentary to more expensive, traditional ocean observing
programs. Participating in groups like this increases our efficiency
because we have to spend less time spent solving problems or reinventing
wheels that other programs have already figured out. It also increases
both the hardware options and data visualizations that we’re able to
offer our industry partners by providing opportunities to learn from
other regions, and with virtual meetings, there’s no costs to
participate. We hope to keep a seat at the table for eMOLT moving
forward.
While we didn’t spend much time on boats this week, it was a busy
time back in the office. Huanxin and I worked on some example data
visualizations for the marine data products meeting hosted by NERACOOS
in Ellsworth, ME next Thursday. If you’re a fishermen up in Maine and
have ideas about how we can make data more useful to you, or just want
to learn what tools are available, you can sign
up here. Travel stipends, lodging, and food are provided for
industry members. Huanxin and I will be joining remotely from Woods Hole
because of the current restrictions on travel to meetings.
Carles from Ocean Data Network finished upgrading the data pipeline
from the realtime eMOLT database to the Gulf of Maine Lobster
Foundation’s ERDDAP
server. Now, instead of pushing the anonymized, QAQC’d data out to
ERDDAP as .csv files (comma-delimited text files), the data arrive as
.nc (netCDF – network common data form files). While this change is
mostly invisible to people pulling data from the ERDDAP server, it
results in substantial performance improvements, with download times
decreasing by 30-40%.
Over at the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation, Linus has been
working on improving the serverside routines for FIShBOT, a gridded,
in-situ bottom temperature product for our region jointly developed by
Linus, Sarah Salois, Mike Morin, and me. We’re also plugging away on a
NOAA Tech Memo to describe the data processing behind this product, so
stay tuned for more info.
The teams at Lowell Instruments, Coonamessett Farm Foundation, and
Rutgers University identified a hardware problem that may impact your
deckbox if you have an external GPS receiver. Some of these systems were
installed with a 90 degree BNC connector. Several of these connectors
have failed unexpectedly, causing the box to display error messages and
lose contact with GPS satellites. Luckily, the fix is easy, just remove
the 90 degree adapter and connect the antenna directly to the box (see
pictures below).

Figure 1 – A) a 90 degree BNC connector means the antenna wire
will point off to the side or back of the box. This connector can fail
and should be removed. B) Once the connector is removed, the antenna
wire will point straight up.
Here at the NEFSC lab in Woods Hole, Hannah C. from the Bottom
Longline Survey team has been lending a hand prepping all of the
dissolved oxygen sensors for deployment in the next few months. This
process involves cleaning biofouling off, replacing batteries and
dessicant packs, greasing or replacing o-rings, and running calibration
checks to see if the sensor heads need to be replaced. We also had our
first Cooperative Research Branch survival suit races in preparation for
the upcoming field season. Groundfish conversion project scientist Dan
G. blew most of us out of the water, with a time of 32 seconds and
Lizzie A. from the Hook and Line Survey team came in a close second. I
finished last with a (barely) buzzer beater 60 second time. Guess I’ve
got some practicing to do.
This week, the eMOLT fleet recorded 229 tows of sensorized fishing
gear totaling 552 sensor hours underwater. The warmest recorded bottom
temperature was 50.6 F east of Block Canyon in approximately 95 fathoms
(red profile) and the coldest recorded bottom temperature was 38.9 F
east of Three Fathom Ledge in approximately 40 fathoms (blue profile).
Below, you can see these profiles plus a few other temperature profiles
of interest across the region from the last week.

Figure 2 – Temperature profiles collected by eMOLT participants
over the last week. The blue profile is where the coldest bottom
temperature was measured and the red profile is where the warmest bottom
temperature was measured. All other colors are assigned randomly.
Colored points on the map indicate where profiles of the same color were
collected. The small dark green dots represent other profiles collected
this week, but not highlighted in the plot. Note that the warmest /
coldest bottom temperatures measured could have occurred during gear
soaks, which are not represented on this profile plot.
System Hardware Upgrade List
The following vessels remain on our list for hardware upgrades. If
you aren’t on the list and think you should be, please reach out.
Note that this list is different from our new install
queue.
- F/V Kaitlyn Victoria
- F/V Kyler C
- F/V Noella C
- F/V Sea Watcher I
Bottom Temperature Forecasts
Doppio
This week, 95.1% of bottom temperature observations were within 2
degrees (F) of the Doppio forecasted value at those points. Most of the
tows this week took place in areas where the model has performed well
previously (in Massachusetts Bay and south of Long Island). Temps off
Isle Au Haut were cooler than expected, and temps along the shelf break
south of New England were warmer than expected.

Figure 3 – Performance of the Doppio forecast’s bottom
temperature layer over the last week relative to observations collected
by eMOLT participants. Red dots indicate areas where bottom temperature
observations were warmer that predicted. Blue dots indicate areas where
bottom temperature observations were cooler than predicted. Bottom
temperature observations are compared with the most recent forecast run
available before the observation was made.

Figure 4 – The most recent Doppio bottom temperature forecast.
The gray line is the 50 fathom line and the black line is the hundred
fathom line. Purple shades indicate cooler water.
Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System

Figure 5 – The most recent bottom temperature forecast from the
Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System GOM7 model. The gray line is the
50 fathom line and the black line is the hundred fathom line. Purple
shades indicate cooler water.

Figure 6 – The most recent bottom temperature forecast from the
Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System MassBay model. Purple shades
indicate cooler water.
Announcements
CRB is Compiling a List of Vessels Interested in Cooperative
Research
In an effort to expand partnerships between fishermen and scientists,
we are ramping up a new initiative to create a list of fishing vessels
interested in participating in cooperative research. We have created
forms for vessels to sign up to participate in cooperative research,
from environmental monitoring to biological sampling to industry based
surveys to conservation gear engineering … the opportunities are
endless! Many scientists want to work with fishermen, but it is
difficult to know who to contact or where to start. The intent of this
effort is to make connections between scientists and fishing industry
members.
- If you already participate in cooperative research and want to
continue to do so, please fill out this
form
- If you do not currently participate in cooperative research, but
want to, please fill out this
form
- If you know other captains or owners who are interested in
participating in cooperative research, please share this form/link
with them
- If you don’t want to deal with an online form but want to sign up,
call Anna Mercer (774-392-7603)
None of the information provided through this form will be shared
publicly. It will only be used to make connections between individual
researchers and fishermen. We hope this effort will expand collaboration
opportunities for the years to come!
Contribute to the 2026 Management Track Fishery Stock
Assessments
The Northeast Fisheries Science Center seeks input from our regional
assessment partners, including the fishing industry (commercial and
recreational), state agency scientists, academic researchers, and
interested members of the public to help guide development of our next
Management
Track Assessments.
Specifically, the NEFSC is looking for on-the-water observations or
data sets on topics such as distribution, stock health, fishing dynamics
and management, and the role these stocks play in the ecosystem.
June 2026 Management Track Stocks include
- Atlantic herring
- Butterfish
- Georges Bank Atlantic cod
- Georges Bank haddock
- Longfin inshore squid
- Ocean quahog
Disclaimer
The eMOLT Update is NOT an official NOAA document. Mention of
products or manufacturers does not constitute an endorsement by NOAA or
Department of Commerce. The content of this update reflects only the
personal views of the authors and does not necessarily represent the
views of NOAA Fisheries, the Department of Commerce, or the United
States.
All the best,
-George